How we cite our quotes: (Section Break.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"Once Dad found the city, and all the rest of it, that was it.… The farm didn't recover. He forgot about the land, forgot about me, too […] We stayed like that awhile. Then one day Dad just didn't come back from the city." (31.42)
Ty's other problem with cities comes from his dad abandoning him and choosing to go to one and be irresponsible rather than be a dad. Again, not all city people are hooked on booze and gambling, though it's definitely more prevalent than it would be in, say, Ty's desert compound. Nonetheless, Ty's traumatic childhood causes him to make serious judgments about cities as locations.
Quote #5
"They found out my name," you snapped. "After awhile, they figured Mum had gone overseas and Dad had died in a pub. By then the farm had been carved up for his debts." You were still glaring at me, gripping the couch until it started to creak. "Nobody knew who I was," you added. "Not really. When I went to the city, my whole life started again, from the dirt up." (31.58)
Just in case you can't tell, when Ty says that about his life starting over again, he doesn't mean it in a good way. Getting taken to the children's home wrecked his entire world, and he lost everything he'd known due to his dad's reckless behavior.
Quote #6
You let my arm fall to one side. "Were you really happy in the city?" […] You backed off a step. "I'm only asking," you said. "Did you really have a perfect life? Do you really miss it … your parents, your friends, any of it?" (37.66-68)
Ty doesn't seem to consider the fact that Gemma would be happy in a city because it's all she's ever known. In his mind, she's been living someplace evil where her whole life is being carved out for her.